Change Me for the Better
by feisty firecracker
Summary: The wedding is approaching. Bella's stressed over last minute details and goodbyes. Jake is still in Canada. Furthermore, everything is complicated by the sudden arrival of some mysterious visitors. Who are they and what do they want with the Cullens?


**Disclaimer:** I own nothing in this story, save for the plotline and all the characters you have never heard of. Oh, and the title. The rest belongs to the brilliant and wonderful Stephenie Meyer.

And yes, I know I've changed the first chapter, split it up and whatnot, so don't freak out. And review, damn it! : )

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I woke with a start, refusing to open my eyes, afraid that if I did, everything would be true. If I kept my eyes closed then I was safe from it all. Nothing could happen if I couldn't see it. Or so I reasoned.

"Edward?" I whispered his name, keeping my eyes shut tightly.

"Yes?" his velvet voice murmured, close to my ear.

I sighed in relief. The dream was just that – a dream. "Nothing."

I heard his frustrated groan and turned to look at him. He was lounging on my bed next to me, a pained expression on his face.

"What?" I frowned, confused.

"I hate it when you do that," he explained. "I wish I knew what you were thinking."

"Oh," I said, unable to keep the smugness out of my voice or off my face.

He frowned, his brow creasing slightly. "Tell me." He leaned closer to me. I shook my head stubbornly, refusing to meet his gaze; knowing what would happen if I did.

"Bella," he murmured in his beautiful voice, his stone arm snaking around my waist as his cool lips brushed against my jaw. "Don't be difficult."

"I'm not," I gasped, trying to keep my head clear and failing miserably. The fog caused by being in his presence was once again clouding my brain, refusing to allow me to think clearly.

"Not what?" his voice sounded amused. I chanced a glance upward; his golden eyes were darker than they should be – he was putting off hunting again – and they were sparkling with laughter. "Not telling or not being difficult?"

"Either one," I muttered, tearing my eyes away from his. "Or both."

He chuckled, pressing his cold lips to my collarbone and breathing in deeply. My heart thumped erratically and I could swear I saw him grin.

"Are you sure you don't want to tell me?" he whispered, his lips brushing along the edge of my jaw.

I shook my head violently, not trusting my voice, sure that it would tremble or break. I heard his quiet laugh again as he kissed the tip of my nose, his cool breath blowing in my face. I was momentarily dazed and therefore wasn't able to look away before his deep golden eyes were locked on mine.

"Bella," he nudged, trying to be patient, but I could tell that I was testing him.

I stared up at him – my perfect angel (though he would never agree) – and opened my mouth, sucking in a shaky breath.

"I…." I faltered, suddenly feeling incredibly stupid about the dream, even after what I'd seen just a few weeks ago. "It's nothing. It was stupid." I looked back up at him to see his eyelids fall shut and felt his chest rise as he took a deep breath.

"Bella, please," his voice was low and seductive, with a note of pleading that surely would have beaten me, even if I had a clear head.

"Okay," I muttered. "I had a dream, no a _nightmare_," I stressed the word, "that Jacob came to the wedding. You and he got into a quarrel and…. And he killed you." I whispered the last part, unable to decide which was worse; the horror of the dream or the ridiculous notion that it was actually possible.

Edward stared at me incredulously for a moment before snorting with laughter. I felt the heat rise in my cheeks and leaned against his cool chest to hide my blush. After a minute or so his laughter died down.

"Honestly, Bella, I'm offended," he smirked. "Do you really think so little of me?"

"It was stupid, I know," I muttered against his chest. "Why do you think I didn't want to tell you in the first place?"

He snickered and kissed my hair. "I love you, silly Bella."

"I love you, too," I replied, raising my head and smiling shakily at him before resting my head in the crook of his neck. "I don't know why I dreamt that. I didn't even _invite _Jacob to the wedding."

I felt Edward stiffen minutely and looked up in time to catch a flicker of something – guilt? – in his eyes. I frowned at him. "You're not telling me something," I accused.

"What, am I not allowed to loathe my natural enemy?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

I raised mine in response. "Oh? You hate him now do you? And that's why you reacted _after_ I said I didn't invite him to our wedding?"

His eyes flickered down to the ring adorning my finger. I sighed and placed my hand on his cheek, turning his face back to mine. "Don't be difficult." I used his earlier words, fighting back a smile.

The corner of his mouth twitched. "I'm not."

"Edward – " I began, but stopped as he sat bolt upright, his eyes widening. "What is it?"

"Charlie. He's awake early," he replied quietly, gently moving me from his lap as he stood. "I'll see you later, my love."

"Okay," I followed him to the window. He slid it open before turning back to me and pressing a quick kiss to my forehead and slipping out the window, disappearing.

"Go hunting!" I called quietly, knowing he could still hear me. "You need it." I heard his quiet laugh and gently slid the window shut before turning back to my bed.

I had just pulled the covers over me when the door opened and Charlie poked his head in, a suspicious frown creasing his brow. I blinked and looked at him, giving him what I hoped looked like a sleepy, confused smile.

"Hi, Dad," I sat up, yawning. "What are you doing up this early?" Apparently I did well faking, because the frown disappeared and he smiled at me.

"Nothing, Bells, I thought I heard someone talking. Must've been you in your sleep," he replied, opening the door farther and leaning against the frame. "So what are you up to today?"

I was momentarily mortified. _Charlie_ could hear me talk in my sleep. From down the hall. Oh no, what had he heard me say? I shook my head to clear it and looked up to see Charlie frowning at me.

"Sorry," I smiled at him. "Umm, I'm not sure. Edward and I are probably going to go over some of the wedding details, and Alice will probably find something else for us to do. I think we still have to finish the guest list."

Charlie grunted; I could see the tightness in his jaw and sighed inwardly. Though it was true he took the news of the wedding well enough, the minute amount of friendliness he had developed toward Edward after the battle had evaporated.

"Well, be careful," he said gruffly. "And let me know if you change your plans."

I knew he was implying that this went for what we were doing today, and for changing my mind about getting married at all, despite his innocent expression. I threw him a dirty look which he took as his cue to leave, and stood up, stretching. I headed to my closet, searching through my clothes before I decided on a pair of worn jeans and a flannel shirt, smiling as I pictured what Alice's face would look like when I went over there today.

I took my clothes and my toiletry bag and headed down the hall to the bathroom. I squeezed some toothpaste onto my brush and quickly scrubbed my teeth before turning the shower on. I undressed and stepped in, reveling in the feel of the hot water as it pulsed over my body. I took my time, relaxing all my muscles and shampooing my hair, inhaling the scent of strawberries as it permeated the air. Once I had finished rinsing my hair out, I turned off the water and dried off before climbing into my clothes. I quickly brushed my hair, combing out the tangles, and went downstairs for breakfast.

Charlie was grabbing his keys as I arrived in the kitchen and smiled at me before he opened the door. "Bye, Bells, I'll see you later."

"By, Dad," I opened the fridge and pulled out the milk, waving as he shut the door. I pulled open a cupboard, grabbing a box of cereal and moved toward the sink to get a bowl. I paused by the phone as I saw a familiar piece of paper.

The wedding invitation we had given to Charlie was wedged under the phone. I pulled it out and ran my fingers over the smooth paper, proud of the design I had chosen. I smiled as I remembered Alice's reaction when we showed her the paper. It was almost insulting how shocked she was when she saw the translucent cream colored paper decorated with a flowery design.

I smoothed the paper one last time before picking up a bowl and filling it with cereal, then hunting down a spoon. I sat down at the kitchen table and started on my breakfast, eating slowly and methodically. Once I was finished I stood up and turned back to the kitchen, intending to clean out my bowl.

I stepped through the doorway and stopped dead, gasping in surprise. Edward was standing by the sink, lounging against the counter. He smiled as I continued to the sink, studiously ignoring him as I rinsed out my bowl. He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder as he gently pressed his lips to my neck. I shivered and leaned back against him before I remembered my words from earlier.

"I told you to go hunting!" I said sternly, turning and glaring at him. He was unperturbed by my glare and simply smiled at me.

"And leave you here by yourself for so long?" he said in mock outrage. "I think not!" He grinned and pulled his arms around me, squeezing me into a quick hug. "I'm going to take you home so you'll be with someone, and _then_ I'll go."

I groaned. "Edward, don't do this to me. Alice isn't going to let up at all. I'll be drowning in wedding details the entire time and I won't have you to stop her."

"Try Emmett," he suggested, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

I rolled my eyes. "He'll laugh at me. And then he'll bring up something else so Alice will have even more to work with."

"Fair enough. I'll talk with Alice," he promised. "I'll make sure she gives you a break."

I sighed. "Okay. Are we leaving now?" He nodded and took my hand, leading me out the front door. I balked as I scanned the empty driveway, not seeing his Volvo anywhere. "Edward, please, please, _please_ don't tell me we're running," I looked up at him, pleading.

He smiled my favorite crooked smile, momentarily scattering my thoughts. "All right, I won't." I whimpered as he helped me onto his back, clamping my arms and legs around him in a death grip.

"I still don't like this," I moaned, shutting my eyes and tucking my face against his back. He chuckled quietly and then we were moving. I honestly wouldn't have been able to tell, if not for the wind blowing against us, but just the fact that I knew we _were_ moving was enough to make me dizzy.

"Bella, love, we're here."

I looked up, sighing in relief as I saw the beautiful house in front of me. Edward gently helped me down from his back, making sure I was steady, before taking my hand and leading me up the front steps and into the house.

"Bella! I needed to ask you about the hors d'oeuvres for the wedding, and I had a few questions about the guest list. Oh, and I was wondering how you wanted to do the decorations for the reception."

I sighed. I had been in the house for less than ten seconds and Alice was already ambushing me with wedding details. I took a deep breath to calm myself; I didn't want to hurt my future sister-in-law's feelings. But luckily, Edward stepped in before I had to say anything.

"Alice, Bella is perfectly willing to go over wedding details with you, and I am perfectly willing to let her, but if she needs a break, or disagrees with you over something, she wins. Understand?"

"Yes, of course," Alice replied, brushing this aside. "Also I wanted to ask you about…."

She stopped as I held up my hand. "I'm serious Alice. If I need a break, I'm taking one. And I'm not going to agonize over every single decision I need to make. We're going to do this quickly, okay?"

"Fine," she said sulkily, her lower lip jutting out in a pout. Edward chuckled and reached over to muss her hair.

"Promise me, Alice," I said, taking her hand and squeezing it. She looked up at me with big golden eyes and I felt my resolve quickly caving.

"Alice," Edward cut in sternly. "Promise us you'll play nicely."

"I promise," she muttered, shooting a glare at Edward. "And I'm doing this for you, Bella, not for my stubborn mule of a brother."

"Thank you, Alice," I said, smiling at her. I turned back to Edward and wrapped my arms around him. "Go. I'll be fine."

He chuckled and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "Be safe, my Bella. I love you."

I kissed his chest. "I love you. Come back soon." He chuckled again and then he was gone. I sighed as I turned to face Alice, who was positively bouncing off the walls now that Edward was gone.

"So, about the hors d'ouevres. I was thinking…."

**So, there's the first chapter of my first Twilight fic. I had a great time writing it and I really hoped you liked it. And if you did, the best way to let me know is to REVIEW! Leave lots and lots of them : ) And I am putting myself on hiatus until I get a few reviews. So if you'd like to know what's happening, review!  
**


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